MANCHURIA, PROMISED LAND OF ASIA
Pacific and Atlantic Photograph
THE SPACIOUS PLAZA OF DAIREN, MANCHURIA, WITH TIIE YAMATO HOTEL IN THE
BACKGROUND
Laid out like Washington, D. C.,
the wide avenues radiate from this parked municipal
center like spokes in a wheel. Through Dairen, Chinese immigrants coming by boat from
Tsingtao and other ports enter Manchuria at the rate of 12,000 a day. This city, which sprang
up like a mushroom (see page 386), is the terminus of the Europe-to-Asia railway line.
The weariest river must some time touch
the sea. After 2.500 miles the toiling
Amur comes to rest in the Gulf of Tar
tary. To its banks blonde Russians came,
away back in 1689, to make a treaty with
China-her first with any white power.
In time myriad Cossacks draped the river's
wooded bends, and the shadow of the
Muscovite eagle fell on all that vast coun
try beyond the Black Dragon, as Chinese
term the Amur.
For 2,000 miles this mighty stream is
navigable; but, as I write this, Chinese
boats never touch the Russian side, and
Soviet craft load and unload only on its
north bank. War made neighbors of
coolie and muzhik, but time has yet to
make them brothers.
On its majestic, winding way the Amur
is met by the Sungari, another useful
river of Manchuria, with a boat and barge
traffic similar to that of our own Missis
sippi. In Manchu, Sungari means River
of Heaven. It waters the plains of Kirin
Province and serves the gay, turbulent
new city of Harbin, Minneapolis of Man
churia, with many flour mills (page 386).
NOW THE WHITE AND YELLOW RACES
ARE NEIGHBORS IN ASIA
Harbin is a "case."
To social and po
litical psychiatrists it is a curious study,
full of implications and connotations.
Harbin, like Angora, again stamps the ad
jective "changeless" as a bogus modifier
of the noun "East"; for now the yellow
man rules over the white at Harbin;
whites work for yellows; and there is
even a charity home for Russo-Chinese
children, which hints at the beginning of
racial amalgamation.
The wreck of society in Russia, the
poverty of survivors who fled to Man
churia, and the surrender of police and
courts in the railway zone to Chinese
brought about this new alignment. True,
it is local and affects only 12o,ooo or more
whites; but it is strangely significant; for
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